Troy Part One: The Trojan
by Serenity Valley
Summary: Team Angel are working on an extortion case, however it seems they have picked up an extra member called Troy, who they all seem to remember as being a permanent member of the team. Who is Troy really? And what exactly is he up to?


"**TROY"**

**Part One: Trojan**

There were seven vampires in the gang. In exchange for their "protection" they "requested" that the human owner of the demon-friendly bar _Lucky Joe's_ pay them a fee of two fresh young humans, twice a week, as a thank you for their generosity. Failure to pay would result in the withdrawal of their "generous" protection, and the bar would get trashed, customers would get attacked, the business would be wrecked. After all there were all sorts of ruffians roaming the streets. With out protection how would Joe know he was safe?

Not the most spectacularly original idea in the history of grand criminal schemes, but an effective one nonetheless.

This was a simple case of extortion. And Joe, the owner of the bar, had turned to Angel Investigations, Detective Agency, for help in getting out of the dreadful mess that he was caught in.

Angel Investigations was very different from your usual sort of detective agency. To start with, the eponymous Angel wasn't a human being, he was a vampire. And not just any "normal" run-of-the-mill vampire either, Angel was a vampire with a soul. He is on a quest to try and atone for the many, many terrible sins he committed before a gypsy curse returned his soul to him. Through Angel Investigations he was able to give help to those who needed him most.

Angel Investigations however was not just Angel working as an individual, he was not a lone warrior against the forces of evil. Angel Investigations was a team. A team dedicated to fighting the more unusual and inhuman evils that lurked in the shadows of the City of Angels.

Cordelia Chase had once been a very popular rich girl who had everything she could ever want: The latest fashions, a flashy sports car, dozens of eager friends. But that was before the IRS caught up with her father who had somehow managed to "accidentally forget" to pay his taxes. Cordelia, all of a sudden poor, fallen from her mega popular status, came to the bright shiny lights of Los Angeles searching for her fortune in the form of a glittering career in acting. Instead she found Angel who she already knew from getting caught up in the wacky supernatural weirdness in Sunnydale. It wasn't long before the moment came, that crucial turning point when her life changed forever. A kiss from the half demon Francis Doyle, moments before his heroic sacrifice, resulted in her receiving visions of those that were in need of the agency's aid, sent to her by the Powers That Be. These visions from above were sent in order to point Angel in the right direction in his great mission to help the helpless.

Wesley Wyndam-Pryce a former Watcher. He had been sacked by the Watchers Council after the Slayer in his charge, Faith, turned bad, causing the Watcher's Council, and the other Slayer Buffy Summers, no end of trouble. Afterward Wesley became a "rogue demon hunter" putting his extensive knowledge of demonology and his reasonable fighting skills to good use; Battling evil in his own small way. Wesley and Angel came together after they found themselves working on the same case. Shortly after that Wesley had joined Angel Investigations permanently and in fact was now, officially, the boss.

Charles Gunn formally led a group in one of the poorest, most rundown areas of L.A. They fought back against the vampires that violently terrorised the streets where they lived. He had joined Angel Investigations, despite his deep disgust and distrust of vampires and strong ties to his group. He had realised that with Angel, and the others, he could take his fight against evil to a whole new level, protecting not only his own, but he could make a real difference to anyone needing protection from the threat of demons.

Winifred Burkle, or Fred as she preferred, was the most recent addition to the team. She had been taken by a portal to another dimension called Pylea, where humans were classed as the lowest of slaves. After a vision from Cordelia, Angel and team had travelled to Pylea and rescued her. After a period of adjustment Fred had become an invaluable asset to Angel Investigations' fight with her brilliant intellect and amazing problem solving capability.

And finally the strong and powerful Warlock, Troy. He came from a harsh childhood on the mean streets of New York. Forced to watch his parents die at the hands of a vampire had left him deeply scarred. He lived on, not knowing the power that was within. A chance meeting with a Wicca resulted in the surprising discovery that he had the potential of a great Warlock. After spending several years in training with her he began his own small fight, driven by a thirst for revenge. And after losing his wife too to a vampire he vowed on her memory to combat evil every day and in every way he could.

Angel had met him just over a year ago and since then they had been good friends. Troy's skill with both blade and magic meant that he was also a very formidable warrior.

Now it was late. After two am. And even though it was a demon friendly bar it was past closing time. Together the whole of the Angel Investigations team waited, hidden in various places in and around _Lucky Joe's_. They were all ready to take on the vampires when they showed up to collect.

Joe was standing behind the bar, cleaning glasses. In the large store room in the back Cordelia and Fred were neatly tied up and gagged, playing the part of the payment. Neither of them had been particularly happy about being the bait in the trap.

Angel was outside, crouched on a shadowy rooftop across from the bar. He would go in and attack the vampires from behind once the action started.

Gunn was acting as one of the bar staff; he was looking busy pretending to polish tables. For weaponry he was armed with a carefully concealed stake.

Troy was hiding, crouching in one of the private booths near the back, his sword ready to be pulled out and used.

Wesley was in the car, parked a short distance down the street from the bar, sitting as inconspicuously as he could. His role was the same as Angel's.

They had been there for some time, the vampires were late. Doubt was beginning to creep into their minds. Did they somehow know about the ambush? Surely they couldn't.

Then to Angel's relief he spotted their big red battered van turn into the street and race towards the bar. Wesley ducked down out of sight. The van screeched to a halt and the vampires all jumped out. All were in full vampire mode, narrow eyes, and elongated fangs. Obviously they wanted to be as intimidating as possible.

When the side door was opened Angel was horrified to see that inside the van there were four people, humans, they were unconscious and tied up in the back. One of the vampires closed the door, hiding the kidnapped innocents from view. He also saw that Joe had failed to take into account the van's driver when telling them how many enemies they would be facing. The driver remained behind the wheel. Angel knew that he had to save those people too. Even though that would delay him from getting into the bar once things started, but he was sure the others would be able to handle the ambush for the time he needed.

The seven vampires swaggered into _Lucky Joe's_ as if they owned the place. Gunn deliberately didn't look up and focused on the job of cleaning the table. Troy whispered a small protection spell so that their heightened senses wouldn't detect his presence.

"Hello Joe." The tall muscular leader said in a mocking tone, a fang baring grin on his face. Two of the vampires remained on watch at the door, arms crossed like a pair of bouncers.

"H-hello." Joe replied shakily, beads of sweat gathering on his forehead. Two of the vampires took seats on stools at the bar.

"You have our payment?" The leader asked.

"Y…yes, of course." Troy was afraid that Joe was going to give the game away.

"Well, let's see them then!" Leader shouted impatiently. Joe turned and went through to the back. The leader and his most trusted pair of vampires followed him.

The leader was named Mac, taken from his living name of Ben McCormick. In life he had been a U.S Army soldier fighting against the Nazi evil in Europe. After being parachute dropped behind enemy lines in France he had become separated from the rest of his Company. It wasn't long before he stumbled across a farmhouse. Hoping that he might find a hot meal and a bath he went straight over to it.

Inside he found a family of vampires that hadn't fed for several days. They drunk his blood and turned him, telling him that during the war was a great time to be a vampire, a real chance for the species to increase its numbers. No one would notice a few young fit solders disappearing after all.

A year after the war ended he left his adopted vampire family and returned to his native Los Angeles. Since then he had been getting involve in various low key criminal activities. Back in '98 had had thought up his extortion plan, similar to one he had been the muscle of in the late fifties. Now he was the boss, and loving every minute of it.

Joe opened the door to the store room and stepped back. Mac went in first.

"Well, well, you have done a good job tonight. These two are fine specimens." He walked over and put a hand in Cordelia's cheek. "Very fine indeed."

Angel leapt off the roof as Wesley climbed out of the car, both with a well sharpened stake in hand.

Angel sprinted over and knocked on the driver's street facing side window. The driver frowned and waved for him to go away. Angel shook his head. The driver's expression angered a little and he waved again, this time more insistently. When Angel shook his head again the driver's face morphed, unleashing his demonic features. Angel stood firm. The enraged driver opened the door and Angel stepped back to let him out of the van.

"Ok wise guy, I'm going to teach you a…" Angel pierced the vampire's heart with a swift jab. As the dust swirled off on the light breeze Angel got into the van.

Wesley hid the stake up his sleeve and walked casually into the bar. One of the two guards snarled at him.

"Get lost!" He commanded, fiery menace in his yellow eyes. Wesley let the stake drop into his right hand and plunged it into the vampire's chest. He ducked as the other guard swung a fist at him through the cloud of ash.

As soon as Wesley entered the bar Gunn put down his cloth and began moving in on the pair at the bar. Troy slowly stood, gripping the handle of his sword tightly.

When Wesley dusted the first vamp Gunn rushed in on the one closest to him at the bar, pulling out his stake. The vampire leapt off the barstool and blocked Gunn's attempt to slay him. The two began exchanging and blocking blows. The other seated vampire did not just sit idle. He moved in to attack Gunn from behind with his barstool. But before he could smash he stool down on Gunn's head, Troy's sword sliced through his neck, separating head from shoulders. The stool clattered to the floor as the hand holding his disintegrated.

Mac heard the noise of the stool hitting the floor and nodded to his two guards.

"Go and see what is going on." He ordered. The vampires rushed out of the room, heading back to the bar.

As soon as he saw Wesley take out the first enemy Angel started up the van and accelerated away. He pulled up behind the parked car that Wesley had been hiding in. Angel got out and opened the sliding side door. Angel used a small knife to cut the tight rope bonds of the kidnapped victims and after checking that none of them were injured, as well as a few words of reassurance that they would be alright, he left them running at full speed for _Lucky Joe's_ to help the others with the fight.

Troy turned to face the two vampires that emerged from the back room as they leapt over the bar, his sword at the ready. They hesitated when they saw the magnificently decorated sword and the determined look on the wielder's face. Troy used this moment of apprehension to take a swing at the neck of the nearest one. The demonic reflexes allowed him duck below the swipe. Troy continued the movement and blocked a punch from the other beast with the sword's hilt. With a flick of the wrist he spun the blade round and sliced the punching hand off at the wrist. The vampire yelled in pain and took rapid steps backward. Troy side-stepped as the first vampire kicked out. He jumped into the air and twisted round, the sword was used again to amputate the leg. The vampire rapidly hopped and flapped his arms frantically in an attempt to keep his balance.

Angel stormed into the bar. He saw Troy strike a fatal blow to the neck of a vampire in doing an impression of a stork trying to take off. The other one was missing a hand.

"Troy! Go and get Cordy and Fred!" He shouted. Troy glanced round and nodded. He leapt over the bar and headed for the back room. Angel rushed in to take on the one handed vampire. He lashed out with a powerful right fist, the vampire using his intact arm to block. The vampire then unleashed a kick and Angel took the boot in the face with a grunt. He was knocked onto his back by the force of the blow. The vampire picked up one of the barstools and held it over Angel, the wooden leg poised above his vulnerable heart.

Troy moved along the corridor as quietly as possible, hoping for the element of surprise against his foe. But surprising a vampire was not the easiest thing in the world to do. Enhanced vampire senses were difficult for a human to stay hidden from. He had managed it in the bar only by carefully controlling his breathing and remaining perfectly still. Now he was on the move and breathing deeply from the fight. That made it unlikely that he would be able to surprise the vampire, but there was a chance and so he had to take it. Troy knew well that any potential advantage had to be seized when combating a demon.

Mac suddenly straightened, alerted by a sound from the corridor. Someone was coming. Whatever was going on, the enemy must be fairly good, after all the rest of his gang hadn't been able to hold them off. But Mac hadn't spend his vampire years idly. He had spent several years training hard in the fighting arts.

He looked to Joe the guilty look on his face said it all.

"You!" Mac Sneered. "You are trying to get out of our little deal!" Joe's eyes widened.

"No! No, not me, I wouldn't" Joe backed away, against the wall.

"Liar!" Mac hissed. He looked over to Fred and Cordelia. "At least your last payment was a good one" He pulled out his sword, a blade he had been using since the early nineties.

"Please, no." Joe managed to gasp before the tip of the sword slashed across his throat. The blood flowed and Mac stepped back as the body fell

Fred's eyes widened and she made a muffled scream. Cordelia just closed her eyes.

Mac smiled and then turned; ready to face whoever dared to enter the room.

Troy kicked the door open and tensed his muscles for the battle ahead. The room appeared to be empty apart from the girls, still tied up and gagged. Both wide-eyed Troy nodded. They were signalling to the right. Troy dived into the room, quickly rolling up onto his feet, narrowly avoiding the vampire leader's strike. Troy spun to face the doorway just in time to block another attack.

"Who are you?" Mac demanded. Who was this fool who dared to interfere with his operation?

"My name is Troy." They separated and took a few steps apart.

"But who are you? Why are you getting involved?"

"I work with a friend of mine, you may have heard of him. His name is Angel."

"Angel! Yes I have heard that name, the traitor! You will die!" Mac moved in, making strong wild swings. Troy hadn't been expecting this so suddenly and had to make several awkward, desperate blocks and quick steps of retreat.

Mac made a horizontal swing, Troy managed to bat the blade away with an upward block, the force of the blow wrenching the sword from Mac's grip.

The vampire stumbled back, Troy raised the sword over his shoulder tensing his muscles, and then he swept it down with the force and speed of a lightning bolt, aimed right for the vampire's neck.

With more luck than skill Mac twisted his body and the blade sliced through the air and caught the edge of his ear, ripping it free from his head. Mac grimaced in pain as he stepped back to avoid another attempt at his neck by a hair's breadth.

Again, again. Troy swung with all his might, but the lead vampire's ducking, dodging and backward steps succeeded in keeping his head firmly on his shoulders but the vampire was being backed closer and closer to the wall. When he reached it, he would be finished.

Angel swept his right hand over his chest and obstructed the stool leg with his open palm. Summoning the hateful demonic strength within him he pushed against the other vampire, propelling the stool into the contorted features of the demon. As the vampire reeled back from the impact Angel had the time he needed to get back on his feet. The vampire was still holding into the barstool, and he brought it crashing down on Angel's head. The wood shattered and flew off in all directions. One of the larger pieces stabbed deep into Angel's shoulder. He gasped as he painfully pulled it back out. The vampire took advantage of this distraction and punched him on the right cheek.

However at that exact same instant Angel brought the splinter of barstool into play, thrusting it into the chest of the demon.

The vampire's skin turned grey, then black, many decades of decomposition taking place in less than a second. Next the body collapsed and crumbled to dust.

Angel took a second to regain his composure and looked round. Gunn was finishing off his foe and Wesley was standing breathlessly beside a patch of dusty floor.

Mac risked a glance over his shoulder; he was only a couple of steps from the wall. Desperately he searched his mind of any way to avoid dying his second death at the hands of this man.

Troy made another swipe, knowing that on his next the vampire would be dust. The vampire leader ducked low and twisted at the same time. As soon as Mac was in a crouch, half facing the wall, he leapt.

Using all the vampiric strength he could muster to propel himself up and towards the wall. His hands and feet barely touched the wall as he clawed his way to further heights. Just before he met the ceiling Mac pushed off with all fours, pulling his limbs tight to his body as he tumbled back. As gravity took hold he stretched his feet out and prepared for impact. With a savage grin he landed on both feet with a thud, his legs bending to absorb the force.

Troy was taken by surprise at the sudden burst of acrobatics from the vampire. He looked up but couldn't follow the incredibly fast progress of the demon as he raced up the wall. Suddenly he felt a hand clawing at the top of his head, pulling him back with overpowering force. At the same time he felt another hand snatch at his sword hand, wrapping tightly around the wrist, compelling him to let go of the weapon. Troy slammed onto the hard floor, a crack resounding in his ears as his skull met concrete. Bright flashes of gold and patches of murky black floated across his vision. The back of his head had a sharp pain that almost convinced Troy that a railroad spike had been impaled through the skull.

Troy fought through the pain and blinking rapidly to clear the flashing haze.

Mac gave a cry of victory, looking down at the stunned fool, a pool of blood beginning to spread under the head. The eyes fluttered, his enemy trying to stay conscious. When he was sure the enemy could understand what was happening Mac snatched up the dropped sword of the enemy.

Troy saw his blade, wielded by the demon, hovering inches from his neck. The fire in his mind prevented him from doing anything about it.

"Goodbye fool" Mac sneered. Troy looked back in determination, focusing on the blade. An expression of confusion spread across the vampire's features as he struggled to bring the sword down on the throat of his defeated adversary.

It was taking pure focus and strength of will, plus a little magic, for Troy to keep the blade from decapitating him. But he was fighting a losing battle. Slowly but very surely the tip of the blade was getting closer and closer. And Troy was getting weaker and weaker. He wouldn't be able to hold off the vampire for much longer,

_All of this careful planning and preparation! All for nothing!_ He thought as he felt the cold metal of the sword came into contact with his skin. Another moment and it would be over.

Without warning the vampire's look of confusion changed to one of panic.

Mac felt something penetrate his back and into his unbeating dead heart. He was finished. With so much still to do his long unlife was over.

A final cry of defeat.

Then a wave of unstoppable black raced over Mac's body, the skin becoming dark flakes. The wave of death didn't stop at the skin, as always it consumed the innards and bones too. The cracking charcoal remains burst apart in a shower of ash.

A hand darted through the dust and grabbed hold of the sword's handle, preventing it under the influence of gravity from killing him, and tossed the blade to the floor. Troy breathed a sigh of relief as the face of his saviour came into view.

"Troy." Angel said with deep concern for his friend. "Are you alright?"

"Thank you." Troy smiled. _Not a complete waste after all_ was his last thought before the blackness took him.

"Troy can you hear me?" A voice called from beyond the darkness of unconsciousness. Troy forced himself back to the land of the living. He opened his eyes, slowly to allow them to get used to the sudden light. When his eyes had adjusted he saw the smiling face of Cordelia Chase looking down at him.

"You gave us quite a scare mister." And she playfully punched him on the arm. Troy returned the smile. He knew exactly where he was: his room in the Hyperion Hotel.

_Even unconscious, it still works_. He grinned inwardly to himself.

"I feel much better." Troy sat up, forcing himself to ignore the pain.

"No, no you are staying in bed." Cordelia told him. "You've been out of it for almost twenty-four hours. You need to rest." Troy shook his head.

"I'm going to go and see a friend of mine, a healer. She'll have me good as new in no time." Cordelia still wasn't convinced. Then memories of an earlier time surfaced in her mind. A few months ago when Troy had been stabbed in combat and he had gone to see his healer friend. Troy had returned without a scratch.

"Oh the healer that helped you when you got stabbed." She nodded. "Ok I'll come with you."

"No Cordelia, it's fine, she prefers it if the patient comes alone." Troy swung his legs out of the bed and got to his feet. Cordy reluctantly agreed.

"Angel, Gunn and Fred have gone to see a family about a possible poltergeist situation. Mr and Mrs Lewis plus kids I think. They left me to look after you."

"When they get back, tell them that I won't be long." Troy said as they walked out of the room. Troy was fiddling with the bracelet on his right wrist. It was gold with a sparkling crystal embedded in a circular amulet attached to the chain.

"You miss her don't you?" Cordelia asked. She was referring to the wife that she believed Troy had told her and the gang about when they had first met. In her mind the bracelet he always wore was a gift from his wife the day before she was killed in a vampire attack. Cordelia and the others knew that Troy never took it off and that he hated anyone else ever touching it.

"Yes, she was everything to me." A solitary tear ran down Troy's cheek. "Not a day goes by that I don't wish that she was still with me." They walked the rest of the way down to the lobby in silence. Cordelia didn't know what to say.

"I'll see you soon." Troy said with a friendly little wave and went out of the hotel. His head still throbbing with pain in the background.

Cordelia watched, feeling pangs of sympathy for his suffering. He had had a hard life, but she was glad that he had found a place where he was happy. Here at Angel Investigations she knew that this life was the life he was meant to lead.

As soon as he was out of the Hyperion Hotel a wide grin stretched across his features, despite the pain of his head injury. He was pleased. Pleased with his Oscar-deserving performance of the grieving widower.

From a concealed pocket in his robes he pulled out a small mobile phone and hit the only speed-dial number programmed in.

"Troy." The stern female voice on the other side of the connection greeted.

"Yes." His tone was equally business-like.

"I trust that everything is going well?"

"Yes, all is going exactly to plan."

"Excellent." He could hear the satisfaction in the voice of his employer.

"I'm coming in to give you my report." Troy said. "And I need a healer. I took a bad blow to the head."

"Of course, one will be here waiting for you when you arrive."

"Fine. I'll see you then." Troy ended the call and tucked the phone back into its hiding place. He walked for a few more blocks before he reached the waiting black sedan. He got into the back and without a word the driver started up the engine and pulled away from the curb.

When the car came to a smooth halt at his destination, Troy and the driver climbed out. The driver led him over to the lift doors of the only elevator in the underground car park.

They rode the elevator in silence and they both got out when the doors slid open. Troy followed the driver along the pristine corridor. The driver stopped at one of the doors and knocked on it before opening it and stepping back. Troy walked into the office. He had been in it only once before. The woman in the sharp looking business suit smiled at him as the driver closed the door behind him. Troy strode to the desk she was sitting at. They shook hands. Her firm grip easily matching his.

"Take a seat." The woman motioned to the leather chair, not as good as her luxurious executive chair, but still very comfortable. Her tone made it clear that it was an order, not an invitation. As he sat down Troy looked over to the only other person in the room, the tall healer dressed in white. She was standing at the window, looking out over the sparkling cityscape of Los Angeles.

"So any problems so far?" The woman asked.

"None at all Miss Morgan, none at all." Troy smiled and so did Lilah Morgan, head of special projects at Wolfram and Hart, his employer.

"You've had a busy first couple of days. You can tell me all about it while the healer gets to work." Lilah said and nodded to the healer who came over and began waving her hands over Troy's injured skull. Troy winced as he felt the strange tingling sensation of magical rapid healing.

"Now Troy, tell me everything." Lilah leaned forward eagerly. Troy waited a second for the tingling to subside a little and then he began his report.

"None of them suspect. The whole plan has come together perfectly."

Lilah smiled. That was exactly what she wanted to hear.

TO BE CONTINUED…


End file.
